Malian man deported to Africa after prison release

(AP) PHOENIX - A man from the African country of Mali has been deported after completing a federal prison sentence for engaging in drug dealing in support of Colombian terrorists.

Idriss Abdelrahman (EE’-drihs ahb-dehl-RAH’-muhn) pleaded guilty in April 2012 at federal court in New York to conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. He was charged along with two other men in December 2009 with agreeing to transport cocaine through West Africa in an effort to support al-Qaida and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.

U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement says Abdelrahman was deported and handed over to Malian authorities this week.

Abdelrahman was sentenced to 46 months in prison but was released and sent back to Mali after being credited for time served since his initial arrest.